How to bring up communication

My bf and I have been dating now for almost 4 months. He’s always been pretty quiet and I just thought that he was shy and would take a while warning up time but he still doesn’t really like talk and it’s frustrating to me. I’ve expressed to him a few times that it makes me feel like he doesn’t like me because he never talks to me or tells me how he feels or what his plans are or anything. I’ve tried to get him to open up to me but he always just tells me it’s hard for him to talk to people who care about him. When I text him the conversations always go the same and he never wants to talk for long and it makes me sad. I don’t want to have to beg for attention or his time and i don’t know how I can convey this to him without hurting his feelings (every time I express how I feel he gets his feelings hurt). I love him and want him to be happy with me but I feel like he isn’t because he never gives me a clue as to what he’s thinking. He says he loves me all the time but I don’t see it in his actions. So basically how do I tell him I need better communication from him without being harsh?😥